Work of Heart Light of Hope Breakfast

CASA will be hosting a Light of Hope fundraiser on February 19th on the 30th floor

of the Regions building in downtown Little Rock. This event will feature Senator

Blanche Lincoln as the keynote speaker and promises to be an exciting morning,

dedicated to the work of CASA. The planning committee is working diligently to

ensure that the event will be a success. However, we need your help. We are

looking for table captains and sponsors for the event.

What we need:

• Table Captains

o Table captains have a relatively simple task: bring nine friends to breakfast.

The breakfast is free and parking at the Regions building is only two dollars.

• Sponsors ( all sponsors will recieve one seat to attend the breakfast)

o Presenting Sponsor - $1,500

 Benefits: Logo recognition on website and all printed event material, as

well as one full page ad in our monthly magazine.

o Food and Beverage Sponsor - $1000

 Benefits: Logo recognition on website and all printed event material, as

well as one full page ad in our monthly magazine.

o Venue Sponsor - $500

 Benefits: Logo recognition on website and all printed event material, as

well as one full page ad in our monthly magazine.

o Friends of CASA - $100

 Benefits: Logo recognition on website and all printed event material, as

well as name recognition in our monthly magazine.

Contact Marquita Rogers at 501-340-6778 for more information or at mrogers@pulaskicountycasa.com

Newest CASA Staff Megan Patterson

Hello everyone! My name is Megan Patterson. I am a student

at UALR and will be graduating this May with a Bachelor

of Arts in Criminal Justice and a minor in Psychology. I am

currently a work study in the Criminal Justice department at

the school. I grew up in the DC/VA area and I have been in

Arkansas for almost six years. I have a wonderful eighteen

month old son and I will be getting married this June. When

I’m not in school or working I love to spend time outside

with my family and watch football and soccer. I am a big

Green Bay Packers fan! I am also hoping that the US Men’s

National soccer team will do great in the World Cup 2010 in

South Africa.

I found out about CASA through the Criminal Justice Society

at UALR. I hope that by interning here I will gain great

experience with the court system and social work that will

help me pursue a career after I graduate. I am excited to take

advantage of every chance to interact with the CASA kids.

Thank you CASA for giving me this amazing opportunity..

Internship Position Open

Pulaski County CASA is currently seeking a Program Development Intern. This position will provide the applicant with insight into the inner workings of developing, promoting and fundraising for a non-profit organization.

This is a non paid internship.

Applicants must be:

•Enrolled in a 2 or 4 year college/university or obtained a minimum of a

Bachelor’s degree

• At least 21 years of age

• Able to successfully complete a criminal background check

• Have a valid drivers license

• Committed to CASA’s goals and mission

Interns recieve the following formal trainings:

• Juvenile Law

• Abuse and Neglect

• Understanding Children

• Family Dynamics

• Substance Abuse

• Pulaski County Juvenile Court System

• Court Etiquette

• Grant Writing

• Networking

• and more.

The Adam J. Weissman Foundation Grant

Special thanks goes out to the Adam J. Weissman Foundation who awarded Pulaski County

CASA with a grant of $1,000. This grant will be a wonderful help in providing CASA children

with necessities they otherwise would have not had access to. With the help of this organization,

CASA will strive to purchase new clothes, toys and shoes for the children. By providing

these necessities, the kids can focus on much more important things, like their educations.

Through work such as CASA does, it is the little things that matter most. Much thanks and

gratitude goes out to the Weissman Foundation for their kind hearts and support.

Board Member Spotlight Shines on... The Erica Hughes

This month’s board member spotlight is ERICA HUGHES. Even though Erica has been with us only a short amount of time, she has jumped in with both feet, broken the surface and hasn’t looked back yet. She is a true champion for CASA. Even before Erica was voted onto the board she stepped up to help with decorating for the CASA Volunteer Banquet. She helped with our annual golf tournament, she decorated for National Adoption Day and even had time to make sandwiches. She pitched a proposal to her fellow Employees at Sysco Foods to help sponsor CASA. Sysco not only collected Christmas toys for our CASA kids and other foster children, but after January they are going to collect spare change from employees until June when they

will spend that spare change to buy needed school supplies for our annual school supply drive. Erica has brought a lot of energy and knowledge to our board. She has two daughters that she raises and is active in their school and their PTA’s. Erica has a unique bond with CASA because of her childhood and truly knows why we advocate for these children. She lives what she preaches and preaches CASA to everyone she comes in contact with. We are happy to have her as a part of Pulaski County CASA and I know we all look forward to working with her for years to come.

January 2010 CASA Reflections

American Legion Post #74 Local post delivers Christmas to children of Pulaski County CASA

Plastic bags exploding with hundreds of toys were recently donated to the foster children of Pulaski County CASA by American Legion Post #74. With the help of Toys for Tots, American legion Post #74 was able to supply the organization with enough toys for each child being served by a CASA. These toys will bring Christmas to children in the foster care system that would not have one otherwise. In an effort to provide other nonprofit organizations with the means to educate

the public about the special needs of children across this nation, American Legion Post #74’s partnership with CASA is vital.

Thanks to American Legion Post #74, hundreds of foster children had something to look forward to on Christmas morning.